The Attempt
by MoroiiAngel
Summary: Songfic to Savage Garden's "Hold Me". An encounter bewteen Malfoy and Hermione in the library. Warning, mostly me writing for the sake of writing.


(A little background info: Ron and Hermione have been going out for a little while, and Draco has been making moves at her.)  
  
Hermione is sitting alone at a table in the library, working on her newest Potions essay. A pair of blue eyes peers at her from behind a nearby bookshelf, while a pair of brown eyes observes from the doorway. Hermione jumps and spins, looking at the source of the sound as it reaches her ears.  
  
"Hey mudblood! Doing your homework on a Saturday again?" Hermione heaves a sigh hiding behind her book. She silently wills him to go away, while turning to face the other direction. Malfoy stands across from her and after a moment of quiet, he reaches out and snatches Hermione's book from her grasp. "Hey, I was wondering if-"  
  
"Save it Malfoy," she cuts him off, "I really don't need your insults right now. Besides, I'm sure your Slytherin friends would appreciate your company more." Draco watches her with narrowing eyes as she continues. "Go crawl back into your hiding hole."  
  
-Hey  
  
If we can't find a way out of these problems Then maybe we don't need this Standing face to face Enemies at war we build defenses And secret hiding places-  
  
"Granger-" Malfoy begins, but he rethinks his words. "Hermione. Listen, okay?" He gives her a puppyish look, and she hardens her expression. The observing pair of brown eyes hardens as well, while their corresponding ears strain to hear.  
  
"I'm listening Malfoy. But make this quick, I have a Potions essay to do." Hermione sets down her quill, and looks at Malfoy with a cold gaze.  
  
I wish she would say something about how she feels. Anything. Just don't make me say it first! "Could you. ever." Malfoy looks down at the table, then looks back up at Hermione. "Will you help me with this essay? I'm having a bit of trouble." Damn it, Draco. You've sidestepped it again.  
  
-I might need you to hold me tonight  
  
I might need you to say it's all right I might need you to make the first stand Cuz tonight I'm finding it hard to be your man-  
  
"You need help?" Hermione says, unbelieving of his excuse. "Draco, it doesn't matter how you do, it just matters that you hand something in. You must know by now that Snape favors you."  
  
Draco clears his throat, and tugs at his collar. Suddenly his shit feels very tight around his throat. He feels like he can't breathe. "Well, er."  
  
"That's not why you wanted to talk to me, is it?" Hermione looks skeptically at Malfoy before picking up her quill once more and shaking it in his face. "Just tell me what you want to say, then go away. Or get your books, if you really need help."  
  
All right Draco, your chance is now or never. "Hermione.I.I like you. A lot. You're smart, and pretty.I don't like fighting with you." His words falter under her stare. Hermione's jaw drops open, and she blinks. The pair falls into silence. The skin around those brown eyes near the doorway burns a deep crimson.  
  
-Hey  
  
More than angry words I hate this silence  
  
It's getting so loud Well I wanna scream-  
  
"What a nasty joke, Malfoy." Hermione manages to breathe out between her clenching teeth.  
  
"Joke? You think I'm a joke! You mudblood-you cold hearted.girl! How could I have ever thought you could see past your messy hair and glance what was in front of you!" Malfoy stands, nearly toppling the bench the two had been seated on. "A joke?" His eyes widen, a torn expression appearing on his face.  
  
"Yes. You are a joke to me, Malfoy. You are a nasty prat." Tears brim her eyes as she speaks, and she turns her head, looking over to the doorway. Her eyes widen as she meets the gaze of the owner of the brown eyes near the doorway. Hermione's breath catches in her throat.  
  
-But bitterness has silences these emotions  
  
It's getting hard to breathe-  
  
Ron walks over to the table briskly, leaving his doorway behind. "'Mione! What's happening?" Hermione turns to look at Ron, a smile playing on her lips. . Malfoy turns his hardening glare to the red head, and the sight of him makes Malfoy even angrier.  
  
"If it isn't the poor patrol. Looking for some spare knuts and sickles, Weasley? Well, you won't find any here. I certainly won't be donating anything to the removal of all those freckles!" Malfoy dives for insults, surfacing with flesh wounds. His cold eyes have a hint of helplessness in them, and his eyes dart to Hermione.  
  
"Life isn't money, you know! His freckles are much more fanciable than your pale skin! Perhaps you should spend some money on some Muggle tanning solution! Ron is much happier with his way of life than you'll ever be with yours!" Hermione rose in Ron's defence.  
  
-So tell me isn't happiness  
  
Worth more than a gold and diamond ring?-  
  
Malfoy wrinkles his nose at Ron, as if Ron were giving off some distasteful odour. Then he turns back to Hermione, and makes a desperate reach for her hand. When this fails, and Hermione shrinks back, Malfoy heaves a sigh, and looks Hermione dead in the eyes.  
  
"Will you help me or not, Granger? I'm willing to change my ways.I just want to be yours. But there's no need for a miracle, a little taste of heaven is all I really ask for." Malfoy manages to give her a smile, despite Ron's horrified expression. Hermione pulls away from Ron, looking from him to Malfoy in confusion.  
  
-I'm willing to do anything  
  
To calm the storm in my heart I've never been the praying kind But lately I've been down upon my knees Not looking for a miracle Just a reason to believe-  
  
Ron now looks at Hermione desperately, sensing that he is loosing the battle for her fancy. He leans over to her, and whispers in her ear so that Malfoy cannot hear him.  
  
"Hermione, he's not worth you time. I thought we were-" Ron begins, but stops when he notices Hermione nodding, but biting her lip.  
  
Hermione speaks loud enough for Malfoy to hear, and what she says brightens his expression. "I know Ron. Maybe he deserves to be looked at from a different angle. Maybe it's time we tried a little bit harder." Hermione smiles at Draco, but Ron frowns darkly, and sounds so angry that his voice is quiet.  
  
-I might need you to hold me tonight  
  
I might need you to say it's all right I might need you to make the first stand But tonight I'm finding it hard to be your man- (A/N: maybe it should be "woman", because the best thing would be for Hermione to be singing this part, but oh well.)  
  
"'Mione! We promised to be inseparable. Remember the astronomy tower? Remember how we were going to ride it as far as it took us? Do you remember?" Ron was pleading with his eyes, his mouth drooping into pout. "You want to break that promise, Hermione? Do you want to leave me?"  
  
Draco smirks at that, but Hermione shakes her head furiously, and opens her mouth to speak, but she is cut off. "Hermione! Please don't leave me for. him. I couldn't live properly. I'd be like a fish out of water." Ron continues. Out of ways to protest, Hermione wraps her arms around Ron's neck, and squeezing tightly.  
  
-Do you remember not long ago?  
  
We used to live for the nighttime Cherish each moment Now we don't live we exist We just run through our lives So alone That's why you've got to hold me-  
  
"Hey mudblood." Draco uses the term with a loving tone of voice, but his facial expression returns to it's hard state when Hermione turns to him. "Maybe I shouldn't have bothered you. You want to call it a joke? Fine. Hey, I don't care if forget all about me ever saying anything. I doubt you will though, you insufferable know-it-all!"  
  
Malfoy turns and begins to walk away. "Crawl back into your snake hole, Malfoy. You big git." Hermione smiles, then hardens her face again. "Don't ever ask me for help again, you albino!" His steel blue eyes look back over Malfoy's shoulder and he smirks.  
  
"See you later, mudblood, Weasley. You Muggle-lovers kill me."  
  
"If only, Malfoy, if only."  
  
-Hey  
  
If we can't find a way out of these problems  
  
Then maybe we don't need this Standing face to face Enemies at war we build defences And secret hiding places-  
  
Ron turns to Hermione, now that Malfoy has left them. "You really scared me there, 'Mione. I really though I was going to loose you. Never do that again."  
  
"Ron, you know I would never brake a promise to you." Hermione begins to pick up her books.  
  
"That's a lie, you're always brake promises to me. Like meeting me places, and-" Hermione snatches the quill he picked up and shoves it in her bag.  
  
"Ron please! I mean big promises. I've never broken a big promise." She puts her hands on her hips, facing him.  
  
"One year you didn't give me a Christmas present!" Ron says accusingly.  
  
"Now who's lying? I gave it to you in person. I told you then, I had wanted to see your expression!" Hermione protests, frustrated.  
  
"Let's just go, Harry'll be missing us." Ron begins to move towards the door, but Hermione looks over to the bookshelf Malfoy had disappeared behind. "Gosh, you're stubborn. By the way, when we get back to the common room, can we cuddle?"  
  
"RON!"  
  
-I might need you to hold me tonight  
  
I might need you to say it's all right I might need you to take the first stand Cuz tonight I'm finding it hard to be your man- 


End file.
